


Chasing Down a Daydream

by Quantrail



Category: CW Network RPF, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Community: j2_everafter, M/M, Minor Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-02-18
Updated: 2012-02-18
Packaged: 2017-10-31 08:54:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/342210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quantrail/pseuds/Quantrail
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jared has magical hair and lives in a tower in the middle of the forest. It seems his life is doomed to boredom until a dashing thief crashes into his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Chasing Down a Daydream

**Author's Note:**

> Written for j2_everafter and based on the movie Tangled. It follows the movie pretty closely in a general way but I hope I changed enough stuff that people familiar with the movie will still enjoy it. Title taken from "I See the Light" off of the Tangled OST.

_Once upon a time, in a kingdom far, far away, there grew a special plant with the most extraordinary properties. Known only to a few people, the plant glowed a beautiful golden colour and grew in a remote part of the kingdom. It was whispered amongst the common folk that the plant could heal any sickness and could even hold back the ravages of time. All that was required was the recitation of a special verse._

_For many years old Mother Mahoney, who knew of the whereabouts of the flower, would visit frequently. She would speak to it whenever she felt too tired in her bones and once her poem was finished she’d be young once more. She had once been a kind woman but as the seasons changed and the world turned she grew bitter and fearful. The magical plant nearly assured her immortality but she worried about the day when someone else discovered her secret. She would do anything to keep the plant to herself so she would never need to fear death._

_Years passed and the whole kingdom rejoiced at the news the queen was with child. This was the first child for the royal couple and the people of the kingdom were looking forward to the birth of the heir to the kingdom. The time for the birth drew near and festivities were planned in the royal palace. Every corner of the palace was gaily decorated and the cooks were hard at work roasting meats and baking breads._

_The joyful atmosphere in the palace was disrupted by the cries of the queen during childbirth. A hush fell as the news spread that the birth was a difficult one. It was feared the queen would not live through the birth and the child would not be able to survive the experience. The king ordered every available man to search every corner of the kingdom for the magical healing plant. It was but a legend in the royal palace but the king could not wait idly by as his wife and child died._

_Every inch of the kingdom was searched and, on a lonely hill on the edge of the kingdom, the golden glow of the plant beckoned to one of the king’s personal guard. The man quickly and carefully cut the flower and stored it away safely, never knowing that Mother Mahoney was watching his every movement. He leapt onto his horse and took off at a gallop for the palace._

_The plant was brought into the birthing room not a moment too soon and the queen’s physician quickly brewed a healing draft. She spoke the legendary verse of poetry as she eased the draft down the queen’s throat. A gentle glow engulfed the weakened woman for a few moments before it gradually dispelled. The queen gained a new lease on life and soon the cries of a newly born infant echoed through the palace’s halls._

_Once the queen was strong enough, and the new parents were satisfied their son was healthy, the newly born prince was presented to the people of the kingdom. People gasped in awe when they witnessed the golden locks of hair adorning the prince’s head. Soon every person present began to cheer and the golden hair was seen as an omen. The prince had been blessed by the magical plant and the kingdom would surely flourish because of it._

_That night, as the child slept, old Mother Mahoney crept into the prince’s bedchamber. She fumed at the sight of the prince’s golden hair. She had nothing but hate in her heart for the people who had taken her plant from her. She softly crooned the special poem to herself and was surprised to see the prince’s hair begin to glow. She wound a strand around her finger as she murmured and could scarcely believe it when she felt her aching bones growing strong once more. Her plant may have died to save the queen and child but it seemed the healing powers had been reborn in the young prince’s hair._

_The old woman quickly took out a pair of scissors and cut a lock of the prince’s hair to keep for herself. Her satisfaction soon turned to dismay, however, when the lock of hair turned a chestnut brown colour. To her horror, the place where she’d cut the lock of hair from had also changed colour. It seemed that cutting the hair had removed its healing properties and if she wanted to remain young she’d need access to the prince’s remaining uncut hair._

_The palace woke the next morning to screams from the prince’s bedchamber. Someone had kidnapped the child._

~*~*~

_Nearly eighteen years later…_

Jensen could hear the pounding of feet behind him as the palace guards chased him and his two accomplices through the forest. Larry, Barry and he had just stolen the crown belonging to the lost prince and it seemed the guards hadn’t taken too kindly to that last link being stolen. He chanced a glance over his shoulder and saw that Guard Misha was gaining on them even as the other guards were being left behind. Jensen scowled to himself then looked at Larry and Barry out of the corner of his eye. The twins were getting tired. 

“Sorry, boys,” Jensen yelled, “but I’m too good-looking for prison.” He grabbed the bag containing the crown from Barry and gave the twins a shove to knock them off balance. He vaulted over a fallen tree trunk and made a dash into some dense undergrowth.

“Winchester!” Larry yelled angrily. “You treacherous dog!” 

The sounds of a scuffle broke out somewhere behind Jensen but he ignored it in favour of making his way through to the other side of the undergrowth. He grunted as small branches scratched his face and it seemed to take forever for him to break out into daylight once more. When he finally made it through he thought for a moment that he must be dreaming. There, at the far end of a huge clearing, stood a massive stone tower. Worried about being captured, Jensen strode towards the tower. It probably had a great vantage point.

~*~*~

Jared woke slowly and stretched lazily in the patch of sun shining through the window next to his bed. He tried to stay in bed for a few minutes more but the excitement churning in his stomach soon drew him from his warm cocoon. He was turning eighteen the next day and he was certain that his mother would finally let him leave home when he did. He knew from her stories that the world was a dangerous place but he couldn’t wait to leave the tower he called home. He felt the need to experience life away from the lonely tower burn deep inside his bones.

He quickly got down to work and threw himself into the routine of his chores. He wasn’t sure when his mother would be home but she’d be in a much better mood if the tower was spotless when she arrived. She was more likely to let him leave the tower if she was in a good mood. He was just storing the cleaning supplies when he heard his mother call to him from the base of the tower.

“Jared, Jared, let down your hair!”

Jared carefully unwound a section of his long hair from where it was pinned to his head in ropes of braids. He knew why his hair couldn’t be cut but sometimes it was a pain to deal with. He swung his newly free hair around a well used support beam built into the wall next to an open window.

“Jared! What are you doing? What’s taking so long?” His mother’s shrill voice echoed up from the ground below.

“Nothing, Mother. I’m nearly ready.” Jared tossed his long hair out the window of the tower. He stifled a moan of pain that wanted to escape when he felt his mother tug on his hair as she used it as a climbing rope. Jared had often wondered why his mother couldn’t have invested in some stairs but he’d learned at an early age that it wasn’t a good idea to question his mother about why she did things a certain way. 

Jared waited anxiously to see what mood his mother would be in when she finally managed to drag herself into the tower. He was relieved to see that she was actually smiling one of her all too rare smiles. He could practically taste freedom on the tip of his tongue. He watched her quietly as he quickly wrapped his long hair back into its elaborate arrangement on top of his head. His mother was examining the state of the tower and she seemed to be satisfied with its spotlessness. Jared felt hope beginning to burn in his chest.

“Mother?” he asked tentatively.

“Hmm?” she replied, still distracted by her examination of the amount of dust on the window ledge. 

“You know the lights that appear in the sky on my birthday?”

“What, you mean the stars?” His mother scoffed.

“Are you sure they’re stars? They only seem to appear on that one day of the year and stars don’t behave like that…” Jared trailed off at the look his mother was giving him. “Anyway,” he started again, “I’ve always wanted to see them from closer up and I’ll be eighteen tomorrow.”

Jared’s mother tightened her lips until only a thin, white line was visible. The extreme paleness of her features contrasted sharply with her raven black hair. She seemed about to say something so Jared quickly started talking again.

“I know the world is a dangerous place, Mother, but I’m ready to go out there now,” Jared said, pleading with his eyes for his mother to understand his need to experience the world for himself.

“Jared,” she said tiredly, “I know you think you’re ready but you don’t know what’s waiting out there. A young boy like you? You wouldn’t last a day.” She walked over to him and cradled his cheek in her hand as he lowered his gaze to the floor and his determination faltered. “People wouldn’t be kind, Jared. They’d see how innocent you are and they’d take advantage of you. If they only robbed and killed you, you’d be getting off lightly. No, we’ll have no more talk about leaving the tower.”

“But-“

“No buts, Jared. You know what could happen to you if people discovered your healing abilities. They’d take advantage of you. You’re staying here where it’s safe and that’s final.” She stared at his face until he raised his gaze to hers. “Are we clear?”

“We’re clear,” he whispered.

“Good.” She removed her hand from Jared’s face and briskly clapped her hands together. “Now, I need to get some ingredients from the other side of the forest so I can make your birthday dinner. I need to leave now if I want to be back in time.” She bustled around the room, collecting her wicker basket and travelling cloak. She came back to stand in front of Jared and sighed. “It’s not so bad in this tower, is it?” she asked kindly.

“I guess not,” Jared replied dispiritedly. 

“See,” his mother patted his cheek. “You’ll be safe here and that’s what matters.” She walked over to the open window and waited for Jared to lower his hair for her. She quickly clambered down to the ground when he was ready.

“I’ll be back tomorrow,” she called up to him as she made her way to the forest’s edge.

Jared huffed out a breath and sat on his bed. He tried not to brood about his situation but it was hard. Some time later his self-pity was disturbed by the sound of someone scaling the side of the tower. With the warnings of his mother echoing in his ears he set about finding a dark corner of the tower to hide in. If robbery and murder was considered a lucky way to die he didn’t want to contemplate what else could happen.

Jared was just easing himself inside an oversized wardrobe when the intruder pulled himself over the window ledge and into the room at the top of the tower. He stood in a patch of sunlight so Jared managed to get a good look at him. Dark blond hair, high cheekbones and a strong jaw were what he noticed first. Next he took in the green eyes that seemed to twinkle with a joke the other man wasn’t sharing.

When the man pulled out a knife, Jared reacted without thinking. He wouldn’t let himself become a victim. He quickly unwound sections of his hair and snuck out of his hiding place. He used his braids like whips and disarmed the stranger before he even realised he wasn’t alone. While the man was still reeling from the first attack Jared picked up a heavy stone statue and hit him over the back of the head. The man slumped to the ground and Jared was left wondering what he was going to do with him.

~*~*~

Jensen groaned as he returned to consciousness. He could feel that he was sitting in a wooden chair and his head hurt like hell. He opened his eyes and blinked rapidly a few times to clear his vision. When he could focus properly the first thing he saw was a strange man looking back at him defiantly, brandishing a frying pan. 

Jensen tried to move and that was when he discovered he’d been tied to the chair. Looking at his wrists a bit more closely he realised the rope was made of hair. Bringing his gaze back up to the other man he came to the conclusion the hair belonged to the tower’s owner. It was ridiculously long for a man and was arranged around his head in elaborate golden braids, except for where it was being used to tie him to the chair. Jensen reckoned he’d have a headache if his hair was that long and heavy.

“Dude, why’s your hair so long? Looks kinda girly,” Jensen blurted out before he could think better of it. He snorted in amusement at the pissy look that crossed the other man’s face. He was too busy being amused to see the frying pan being swung at his head.

~*~*~

Jared stared in shock at the frying pan in his hand. He hadn’t even meant to hit the stranger again but he made Jared so _mad_.

Taking this opportunity to do a bit of investigating Jared grabbed the bag that had dropped from the other man’s hand earlier. Opening it, he found a strange circle made of gold. There were gems set into the metal and it made something deep in his stomach ache. After a few moments Jared realised that the strange jewellery was meant to be worn on a person’s head. Mentally shrugging and trying to ignore the uneasiness he felt he put it back in the bag and hid it from view. He turned back to the stranger when he heard sounds of movement.

“Who are you and why are you after me?” Jared demanded.

“Huh? What?”

“I said,” Jared gritted out, “who are you and why are you after me?”

“Dean Winchester, at your service,” the man grinned cockily. “And I’m not after you.”

“If you’re not after me, why are you here, Dean Winchester?” Jared shot back.

“I saw this beauty of a tower and I just couldn’t resist climbing it,” Dean smirked.

Jared narrowed his eyes and stared at Dean soundlessly.

“Okay, okay,” Dean said appeasingly. “There are some people chasing me and I thought this place would have a good view of the area. You know, I could see them coming from a mile away?”

“Why are you being chased?”

“Long story,” Dean grinned.

“Is it because you stole the thing in your bag?” Jared asked.

“Okay, maybe the story isn’t that long,” Dean continued to grin unrepentantly. “Speaking of my bag, where is it?”

“Somewhere you’ll never find it,” Jared said stonily. “Unless…” 

“Unless what?” Dean wasn’t looking very self-assured anymore.

“Have you seen the lights that appear in the sky every year? They only appear on one day of the year.” Jared turned away to look out the window in the direction where the lights came from.

“The lanterns?” Dean asked in a puzzled tone of voice. “Yeah, they’re released by the people in the palace in remembrance of the lost prince. They release them on his birthday. Which would be…” Dean trailed off in thought. “Tomorrow. They’ll be released tomorrow.”

“Lanterns,” Jared whispered to himself. “Of course.” He turned around and focused his gaze back on Dean again. “I will give you back your bag only after you take me to the palace to see the lanterns, Dean Winchester.”

“What?” Dean spluttered. “Me? Go to the palace? No way. Nuh-uh.” 

“Then I guess you’ll never get your bag back.” Jared shrugged and turned back to the window again, acting as if he couldn’t care either way. He feared the sound of his heart hammering in his chest might give him away. Finally, he heard Dean sigh heavily.

“Fine, fine, I’ll take you to the palace. Can you untie me now?”

“Can I trust you not to try killing me?” Jared asked snidely.

“If I do that I won’t get my bag back,” Dean grinned again, apparently in a better mood. “So, hair boy, can you let me out of this chair?”

“Don’t call me that,” Jared muttered as he worked on releasing Dean from the chair.

“Whatever you say, hair boy,” Dean smirked. He bounded out of the chair and tousled Jared’s hair as he strode towards the window.

_It’s going to be a long trip,_ Jared thought to himself as he packed some supplies for their journey, hiding the metal circle underneath everything.

~*~*~

After a few hours walking through the forest Mother Mahoney realised she’d forgotten her knife in her haste to leave. She couldn’t harvest the ingredients without a knife so she turned around and went back to the tower.

When she broke out into the clearing she was shocked to see a dark-haired man scaling down the side of Jared’s tower. She hung back at the forest’s edge and waited for the man to make his exit through the trees. When she was sure the strange man was gone she ran over to the tower and called for Jared to let down his hair. Receiving no response she ran around to the back of the tower and pressed down on an unassuming piece of brick. Suddenly, a secret door opened up and a stone staircase was revealed. She ran up the stairs and, with a dawning sense of horror, realised Jared was no longer in the room at the top of the tower. The only clue to his whereabouts was a crumpled wanted poster lying in the middle of the floor, presumably left behind by the dark-haired man. Smoothening out the creases she came face to face with a drawing of Dean Winchester. Wanted, dead or alive.

“I think I can help with that,” she muttered as she grabbed the knife she had returned for. This Dean Winchester would pay for taking what was hers.

~*~*~

Jensen glanced at his travelling companion out of the corner of his eye. He had to admit, he’d never seen anyone, girl or guy, with hair quite like Jared’s. It was a beautiful golden colour and seemed improbably long. He’d quickly realised that the hair was a sore topic for the younger man so Jensen took delight in teasing him about it.

The hair was so strange that it had taken Jensen longer than usual to recognise that the man was really attractive. With all his attention focused on the top of Jared’s head he didn’t notice the beautiful eyes until he caught them peering out from behind the curtain of hair. They seemed to change colour depending on how the sunlight hit them. And the boy had dimples! Jensen couldn’t hold back a grin when he spotted them.

Jensen was so preoccupied with sneaking glances at Jared that he didn’t even realise they were no longer alone until an arrow whizzed past his head. He quickly grabbed Jared’s hand and pulled him down to the forest floor to take cover behind a fallen tree trunk.

“What was that?” Jared hissed.

“That was an arrow,” Jensen replied sagely.

“I _know_ that was an arrow. But _why_ was there an arrow fired at us?” Jared retorted.

Before Jensen could reply he heard a familiar voice calling out to him.

“Winchester! Come out right now and this doesn’t have to end badly,” Larry shouted from a short distance away.

“We just want what’s ours,” Barry added.

Jensen looked around desperately and his gaze landed on a gap in the undergrowth. He nudged Jared and nodded his head towards the area he’d seen.

“Do you think we can make it over there before they shoot us?”

“I don’t think it’s me they want to shoot,” Jared snarked. “Uh, yeah, maybe,” he quickly added when he saw the glare Jensen directed at him.

“On the count of three, then. One, two, three!” Jensen pushed Jared ahead of him and ran for all he was worth towards the gap in the foliage. He felt a sudden jolt in his arm and a fiery pain burned through the flesh but he had no time to worry about it. They had reached the gap and it had been hiding a sudden drop down a steep slope. They tried to stop before they fell down the slope but the two men had too much momentum going. They tumbled down for what seemed like an eternity before a tree made them come to an abrupt stop. 

Jensen groaned as his ribs protested against the slightest movement. He had no time to baby his cracked ribs, though, as he could hear the sounds of pursuit coming from above. He grabbed Jared’s shoulder and forced him to his feet. He took off running, pushing Jared ahead of him all the way. His eyes scanned the forest on all sides until he finally spotted a heavily concealed entrance to a cave. He was surprised he had managed to see it and he was hopeful the twins wouldn’t notice it.

“C’mon,” he grabbed at Jared again and directed him towards the cave mouth.

~*~*~

Jared shivered as he hid in the dark, damp cave with Dean Winchester. They hadn’t spoken for a long, tense hour and darkness had fallen while they waited. They had heard their pursuers run past a few minutes after they had taken refuge in the cave but there was always the possibility that they’d double back in search of them.

Jared glanced over at Dean when he started moving around at last. He was shocked to see an arrow sticking out of Dean’s left arm. The head had gone right through the flesh of his bicep. Dean grimaced in pain and was taking quick breaths. He reached up and grasped the shaft of the arrow just below where it poked out through his arm. He quickly broke it off and couldn’t quite muffle his scream of agony.

Jared felt a little helpless and he watched as Dean reached around the far side of his arm and pulled the remains of the arrow from his flesh. Sweat was rolling down his face and he groaned in pain.

“Do you have anything in that pack of yours that can help with an arrow wound?” Dean gritted out.

Jared shook his head and Dean collapsed back against the wall of the cave. He took small gasping breaths as pain wracked his body. He shifted a little, trying to get comfortable. Jared imagined that it was hard to feel comfortable with a hole in your arm and broken ribs. He’d been luckier than Dean. He’d ended up with a small bush cushioning his landing against the tree and he’d only gotten a few bruises.

“What was that all about?” Jared questioned hesitantly. His mother had warned him that the world was a dangerous place but he couldn’t imagine Dean hurting people. He’d gotten to know the other man a little during their walk through the forest and he didn’t seem like a hardened criminal. A thief, certainly. But not someone that would hurt you.

“You know how I stole the thing that’s in my bag?”

“Yeah,” Jared agreed slowly.

“I wasn’t alone when I stole it,” Dean grunted. “I did it with the help of Larry and Barry. We attracted the attention of the palace guards on our way out of the palace and we got chased into the forest. I might have, uh, made sure that the twins tripped so I had time to get away. Apparently, they got away from the guards, too.” Dean coughed weakly and closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the wall.

Jared leaned back against his part of the wall and considered what he’d been told. Dean was a thief, and a bit of a dick, but he wasn’t violent. His whirling thoughts were interrupted by Dean.

“Jensen,” he said. Jared stared at him blankly. “My name. It’s not really Dean Winchester. It’s Jensen Ackles.” He grinned weakly at Jared.

“Why did you change it?” Jared asked softly. “Jensen,” he tried the new name out and found that he liked it.

“Dean Winchester is a cooler name,” Jensen teased gently. “Jensen was a little orphan boy who could barely steal enough food to feed himself. Dean, though, he’s an awesome thief.” 

“I don’t know,” Jared smiled at him, “I kinda like Jensen.”

“Me, too,” Jensen chuckled weakly.

“Can I tell you something without you freaking out?” Jared turned hesitate once more.

“Hey, it’s not like I can storm off now, can I?”

“Heh, I guess not,” Jared chuckled nervously. “You know how I have hair that’s pretty long?”

“Understatement.”

“It’s, uh, magical. It has magical healing powers.”

“What?” Jensen asked incredulously. “What are you talking about?”

“Just-” Jared huffed out a breath in annoyance. He unwrapped some of his hair and delicately wound it around the injured parts of Jensen’s body. Jensen moved fitfully and seemed about to complain until Jared started murmuring the special verse. The cave was filled with a golden glow that was obviously emanating from Jared’s hair. The glow slowly dissipated and when it was gone entirely Jensen moved experimentally. Shock covered his face when he discovered all his injuries had been healed.

“How did you do that? How? I mean, how-” Jensen babbled as Jared slowly removed his hair from around the other man.

“I told you not to freak out,” Jared said calmly.

“This is not freaking out,” Jensen said quickly. “This is… adjusting to a new situation.”

“Uh huh,” Jared nodded knowingly.

Jensen visibly reined himself in. He cleared his throat and glanced at Jared sheepishly. He lifted a hand and ran it through Jared’s hair, frowning when he found a few short, brown strands.

“Why are these bits brown?”

“My mother told me that when I was a baby someone tried to cut off some of my hair so they could have the healing power of it for themselves. But when they cut it the hair turned brown and had no magic in it at all. Mother took me into the forest to live in the tower so she could protect me from those that would try to take advantage of me.” Jared shrugged weakly. “I’ve lived there my whole life.”

“Oh, Jared,” Jensen sighed. He cupped Jared’s face with his hand and leaned in to give him a gentle kiss on the lips. The kiss lingered for an endless moment and then Jensen pulled back. “You’re out of the tower now,” he smiled gently at Jared.

“Yeah, yeah I am,” Jared smiled back. He snuggled into Jensen’s side and closed his eyes. As he drifted off into sleep he thought he felt a gentle kiss being pressed onto the top of his head.

~*~*~

Guard Misha was very good at his job. He’d deservedly earned a great reputation for tracking fugitives through the worst of terrains. He’d been momentarily stunned when Larry and Barry ganged up on him and hit him on the head but it hadn’t taken him long to get back on the trail. He’d determined that it was Dean Winchester that had possession of the prince’s crown so he followed that trail instead of the one left by the twins. It had brought him to a strange tower hidden in the forest but he had no time to linger on the mystery of the tower. 

He’d continued tracking Winchester through the forest until darkness forced him to make camp. He slept that night, never knowing that he was being tracked too.

~*~*~

Mother Mahoney huddled in a tree and kept watch over the dark-haired man she’d followed from the tower. She reasoned that he must be chasing whoever took Jared so if she followed him, she’d find Jared. Her bones were aching and she felt cold deep inside. She had better find Jared soon.

~*~*~

The following morning Mother Mahoney continued to follow the dark-haired man and was shocked when she nearly slammed into someone else wandering the forest. She backed up and realised there were two someones in her path.

“Have you seen anyone else in this forest?” One of the men growled.

“About six foot, name of Winchester,” his twin added.

“Boys,” she grinned in delight, “I know how to find him.”

_And now I have help getting rid of him_ , she chuckled to herself.

~*~*~

Jensen and Jared spent most of the day trekking through the forest. They needed to keep up their pace if they wanted to get near the palace in time to see the lanterns being released into the night sky. They passed the time by talking and learning more about each other. The more they talked the more they felt a strong connection developing between them. Jared wasn’t sure if he wanted to fall in love with a thief but every time he thought back to the kiss they had shared the night before a small smile made its way onto his lips. 

That evening found them sitting on a ledge looking over the lake that glistened in front of the palace. Jared was so excited he could hardly keep still but he was nervous, too.

“What is it?” Jensen asked gently. “You’re kinda twitchy.”

“It’s just. I’ve dreamed of seeing the lanterns up close for so many years. The only reason I can see them now is because you’re taking me while my mother is away from home. I’m so excited to finally be here, and to finally be out of the tower. But I’m also scared. What if it doesn’t live up to my dreams? I’ve built it up so much it’s almost impossible that the lanterns can live up to that.” Jared sighed and looked down at the distant water. “And when it’s over, that’s it. I won’t have a dream anymore and I’ll have to face my mother.”

“Hey,” Jensen used his finger to lift Jared’s chin. “There’s always another dream to work towards.” Jensen leaned in and kissed him. Jared closed his eyes and savoured the feel of Jensen’s lips on his. Butterflies started chasing around in his stomach and his cheeks felt impossibly warm. The kiss ended and he slowly opened his eyes. He almost couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Reflected in the water was a glowing light. Raising his head he gasped when he saw the first lantern taking flight through the sky. Soon there were hundreds of lanterns soaring in the sky.

When Jensen wrapped his arm around him Jared snuggled into his side and basked in the wonder of the moment.

~*~*~

When the last lantern disappeared from the night sky Jared turned to Jensen. He dug through his pack then held out the stolen crown.

“Here,” Jared said bashfully. “I think this belongs to you.” 

Jensen felt something tighten in his chest and was about to answer when movement a short distance away grabbed his attention. He couldn’t see anything and was about to dismiss it from his mind when he saw Larry and Barry even further down the lake’s shoreline. As he watched them they made threatening gestures. 

Jensen looked down at the trusting face of Jared and made a decision. He wanted Jared more than the crown. He’d go over to the twins and give them the crown they wanted so badly and then Jared and he would be safe from them. He nodded to himself in determination.

“Thanks, Jared,” Jensen murmured as he took the crown from Jared. “I need you to trust me, okay? I need to do something and you can’t come with me.”

“What do you need to do?” Jared asked in confusion. “And why can’t I go?”

“Please, Jared? I don’t want you any more involved in this. Trust me?”

“Of course I trust you.” Jared smiled tremulously.

Jensen smiled back and then turned away. He walked quickly to where he’d seen the twins but they seemed to have moved back from the water’s edge. When he found them in the shadows he could no longer see Jared where he stood on the shore.

“Hey, boys,” Jensen exclaimed, fighting to inject some cheeriness into his tone. “Long time, no see! Except, you know, for that time you shot me. I do believe that happened yesterday.”

“Enough, Winchester. We’re taking what’s ours.”

“Yeah, about that,” Jensen said. “Here’s the crown. You can have it. I found out it didn’t quite fit me. Pity. I’d have loved to wear it.” Jensen held out the crown to Larry. He was surprised when the crown was slapped out of his hand.

“We don’t want the crown no more,” Barry said.

“We want the boy with magical hair,” Larry continued. “Seems like you’ve been holding out on us, Winchester.”

Before Jensen could move he’d been hit over the head with a tree branch. He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

~*~*~

Jared paced up and down the shoreline. He didn’t know how long Jensen would take but the wait seemed interminable. He heard a sound behind him and quickly turned around. Instead of the welcome face of Jensen he was confronted with a set of identical twins. Larry and Barry.

“What are you doing here?” Jared put as much authority into his voice as possible.

“Taking what’s ours,” one of the men leered.

“Winchester got the crown and we get the boy with the magic hair,” the other man grinned nastily.

“What?” Jared exclaimed. “He wouldn’t do that. He wouldn’t betray me.”

“All he does is betray people,” the first man snorted. “Don’t believe me? See for yourself.”

Jared looked in the direction the man was pointing and was stunned to see the distant figure of Jensen on horseback. He was trotting at a gentle pace towards the palace.

“Jensen!” Jared yelled. “Jensen!” He shouted until he was hoarse and the twins just laughed at his misery. Jensen never turned back.

“Now, it’s time for us to claim our prize.” The men moved forward menacingly and Jared shrank back against a tree trunk. He shut his eyes in terror and waited for what was about to happen. What he didn’t expect was to hear two thumps as the men slumped to the ground in front of Jared. Opening his eyes he found his mother standing there, grasping a rock in each hand. Jared stared down at the backs of the men’s heads in wonder. Who knew his mother was capable of that?

“Jared,” she crooned. “It’s time to go home. I told you the world was too dangerous for people like you. Why didn’t you just listen to your mother?”

“I’m sorry, Mother,” Jared staggered forward and fell into his mother’s outstretched arms.

“It’s okay, I forgive you.” His mother hugged him to her chest. “I’m feeling old, Jared. All this rushing after you, it’s aged me.” She stroked a hand over his hair. “Say the poem for me?”

“Of course, Mother!” Jared started guiltily. He hadn’t meant to hurt his mother. He murmured the well-known verse of poetry and watched as the age melted from his mother’s features. Where before she’d been worn and grey looking, now she was young and vibrant once more.

“Come, Jared,” she said as she pulled on his arm. “Time to go home.”

~*~*~

They had been walking for an hour or so when Jared’s brain started to come out of the shock Jensen’s betrayal had caused. It had looked bad but maybe Jensen hadn’t been riding off into the sunset. He had asked Jared to trust him, after all. He seemed to care for Jared as much as he himself cared for Jensen. What if appearances were deceptive and he shouldn’t be giving up on Jensen so quickly. 

Jared’s footsteps got slower and slower until they came to a complete stop. He should turn back. Find Jensen. He knew there had to be an explanation for what had happened. Jensen would never abandon him.

“Jared,” his mother snapped at him. “What have you stopped for? It’s still a long way back to the tower. We won’t be safe until we get back there.”

“No,” Jared whispered.

“Excuse me?” his mother asked incredulously. “What did you say?”

“I said ‘no’, Mother,” Jared said clearly. “I met someone. I need to go back for him.”

“Who?” She scoffed in derision. “That guy who rode off on horseback?”

“I’m sure he had a reason…” Jared trailed off. “Wait, how did you know he was on a horse? He was out of sight by the time you rescued me.”

“Well,” she stuttered, “I, uh, I must have seen him while I was trying to find you.”

“Mother,” Jared bit out, “what did you do?”

“What I had to,” she sniffed delicately, giving up all pretences. “He wasn’t good for you.”

“What did you do?” Jared thundered.

“Sent him to his death,” she hissed out. “If you’re not careful, you’ll be joining him.” She whipped out a sharp knife she’d been hiding in her skirts and pointed it at him threateningly. “Now, keep walking. We have a tower to get back to.”

Jared howled out his grief and disbelief to the night sky.

~*~*~

It was the sudden stop that jerked Jensen awake. He shook his head groggily then stared down where his hands were tied to the pommel. He snorted when he saw that the prince’s crown had also been tied to his hands. He looked around to see where he was and froze when his gaze met Guard Misha’s.

“Uh, hi?” he tried.

The guard cocked his head to one side as if he were studying Jensen. After a few moments he seemed satisfied with what he saw.

“I have a knife, don’t move,” he said calmly. 

Jensen froze in place. He wasn’t sure what the knife was for but not moving sounded like an awesome plan. He breathed a sigh of relief when the knife was used to cut rope that was binding him. The guard made quick work of all the bindings and quietly stored the stolen crown in his pack.

“Not that I’m not grateful,” Jensen started tentatively, “but why are you helping me? If you hadn’t stopped the horse I’d have ended up back at the palace and one of your buddies would have arrested me.”

“From what I’ve ascertained of your movements, I don’t believe you’re a threat any longer.”

“Wait, you’ve tracked me this whole time?” Jensen asked incredulously.

“Of course.” The guard nodded placidly. 

“Okay,” Jensen blinked. “Could you take me back to Jared? The twins said something about wanting him and I want to make sure he’s okay.”

“I can do that,” Guard Misha shrugged. “It would be faster if I rode with you.”

“Uh, yeah. Hop on.”

With the guard giving him directions they quickly got back to the area where he’d left Jared. Instead of Jared, however, all he saw were the twins. They were out cold.

“I don’t understand,” Jensen murmured. “Where’s Jared?”

Guard Misha got down off the horse and studied the ground carefully. He paced in several different directions then squatted to get a closer look. He looked up at Jensen with a slight smile on his face.

“He left with a woman. A woman who knocked out our friends over there,” he nodded at the unresponsive twins.

“His mother,” Jensen breathed. He hadn’t met the woman but he didn’t have that high of an opinion of the woman who’d, for all intents and purposes, kept her child as a prisoner. “Can you track them?”

“Of course,” the guard looked at Jensen as though he were stupid for even asking. “But first, I need to secure the prisoners. Hand me some of the rope they used on you?”

In a few short minutes they were on the trail of Jared and his mother. Jensen rode the horse behind Misha, who walked in front to read the tracks. They had been moving quickly for a half hour or more when a grief-stricken howl rent the night air.

“Jared!” Jensen exclaimed. Ignoring the palace guard he spurred his horse into a gallop and charged in the direction of the howl that seemed to go on forever.

~*~*~

Jared was fending off his mother’s attempts to get him moving as he cried out his grief. His focus had narrowed down so much that it took him a while to realise there was a crashing sound coming towards them through the forest. He looked up as his mother melted into the darkness surrounding one of the bigger trees. A few moments later a horse burst out of the foliage. Jared gasped when he saw the rider.

“Jensen!” He cried in disbelief. Surely he was imagining things.

“Jared!” Jensen quickly dismounted the horse and ran towards the other man. “Are you okay?”

Jared saw a sudden burst of movement in his peripheral vision and the next thing he knew his mother launched herself at Jensen. It seemed to happen in slow motion but at the same time it was over in the blink of an eye. His mother slammed into Jensen, knocking them both off of their feet. She quickly sprang up off the ground but Jensen didn’t move. Jared stared in horror at the knife handle protruding from Jensen’s chest.

“Jensen!” He screamed and collapsed onto his knees next to the man he loved. “No, no, no.”

“Jared,” Jensen couldn’t say any more, blood filled his mouth and ran down his chin.

Jared was suddenly yanked off his feet by a sharp jolt in his neck. He clawed at his neck in a daze and it took him a few moments to figure out what was happening. His mother had found some rope and she’d made a noose out of it. She’d tossed it over his neck and was using it to drag him away from Jensen.

“Now, now, Jared,” she chided. “We really must be getting home. Mother doesn’t like to be away for too long, you know.”

Jared recovered from his shock and used all his strength to fight his mother’s pull on the rope. He could hear her grunting in effort and under that sound was the noise of Jensen choking on his own blood.

“Please,” Jared wheezed in desperation. “Please, let me heal him. If you let me heal him I’ll go anywhere you want and I won’t fight you. Please, I’ll do anything if you’ll just let me go to him.”

“Fine,” she replied after a moment’s hesitation. “But I’m warning you, any tricks and I’ll make you wish you were dead.”

Jared bolted to Jensen’s side the moment he felt the rope around his throat slacken. He started to wrap his hair around Jensen’s chest but Jensen fought him off weakly.

“Jensen,” he begged, “what are you doing? I need to do this to save you.”

“But then you’ll be trapped,” Jensen whispered weakly.

“I don’t care.”

Jensen reached up with his left hand to grasp the back of Jared’s neck. Jared thought he was using the touch to anchor himself until Jensen had a sudden burst of energy and yanked the knife out of his own chest and quickly used it to chop off all of Jared’s hair at shoulder length. He stared in horror as Jensen collapsed back to the ground, blood pouring out of the wound in his chest. He was only distantly aware of his mother screaming behind him, all of his attention was fixed on Jensen.

Jared grabbed some of the hair that had been cut from his head and tried reciting the verse but nothing happened. Jared stared mutely at the chestnut brown hair clutched in his fist and then turned his gaze to Jensen.

“Jensen,” he whispered. Jensen smiled tiredly up at him for a second before his head rolled lifelessly to one side. Jared clutched his body to his chest and desperately chanted the verse. He felt tears welling up in his eyes as he rocked back and forth with Jensen clutched in his arms. He sobbed as painful blackness seemed to eat him up from inside and all he could do was numbly repeat the healing verse over and over. The tears rolled down his cheeks until they reached his chin. One hung suspended for an endless moment, then fell onto Jensen’s cheek.

A healthy pinkness invaded Jensen’s face and the spot where the tear dropped seemed to glow with the healing magic. Jared held his breath as Jensen seemed to come back to life and he couldn’t contain a sob when Jensen’s eyelids fluttered open.

“Jensen!” Jared collapsed on top of him and quickly captured his lips in a desperate kiss, needing that primal confirmation. Jensen gave as good as he got and it was several long minutes before they broke apart for air.

“What happened to your mother?” Jensen glanced around warily.

“She turned to dust,” came a very matter-of-fact voice from a few metres away. Jared’s gaze snapped to the unknown man in their midst. 

“Oh. She did?” Jensen asked in bewilderment.

“She _was_ three hundred years old,” Jared muttered into his ear then turned to address the stranger. “Who are you?” 

“I am Guard Misha. And you are the lost prince.” It was stated so blandly it took a moment for Jared to process what had been said.

“Wait, what? I’m not a prince.”

“The family resemblance to the king and queen is unmistakeable.”

“You’re kidding me,” Jensen whistled in surprise.

“It would seem the woman you called Mother was not your mother after all.” Misha shrugged unconcernedly. “The people will be glad that you’ve returned.”

“I’m a prince?” Jared asked weakly.

“Looks like,” Jensen agreed with a grin. “I always did want to live in a castle.”

~*~*~

_There was much rejoicing throughout the kingdom when it was confirmed the lost prince had been found at long last. The palace was decorated for the first time in eighteen years and the cooks were put to work preparing a feast the likes of which had never been seen before._

_The moment that would always stand out in Jared’s memory was when he came face to face with his parents for the first time in so many years. His mother’s eyes filled with tears and her hand came up to her mouth to stifle her sobs before she broke out into a run and gathered him up into a hug. His father wrapped himself around the both of them and the next thing he knew Jensen was in the hug too._

_This right here? Being wrapped up in the love of his parents and Jensen? It was the best magic in the whole wide world._

_And they all lived happily ever after._

_The End_


End file.
